KDE OBS Generator Builds KDE Packages for Various Distros

Building distro-specific packages is not one of the strengths of most developers. The KDE OBS Generator should solve this problem with the help of openSUSE Build Services.

The idea for kde-obs-generator emerged from CampKDE and FOSDEM. Since then, Novell employee Lubo Lunák has uploaded its first developer version on kde-apps.org. The program creates RPM and Debian packages for openSUSE Build Services (OBS) supported distros without having to know very much about package building. A few command line commands in kde-obs-generator will easily create packages, according to Lunák. He has tested it on Plasma, KDM and KSplash themes, simple wallpapers and, of course, KDE apps themselves. The tool should greatly simplify uploading content to the kde-apps.org site, for example.

The list of supported distros currently includes openSUSE, Fedora, Mandriva, Kubuntu and the SUSE Linux Enterprise products. Unfortunately Debian is currently excluded because "Lenny," the only supported release, does not deliver KDE 4 packages. First attempts to solve this problem are under way.

Lunák ends his blog with a request for non-SUSE users to find a better solution than the current manual installation using http://download.opensuse.org. There's always hope that OBS will provide the repositories sometime soon.

Just in time for the launch of openSUSE 11.1, Novell developers have completed the new Contrib-Repository. The Contrib will act as a bridge between factory (packages officially supported by Novell) and third party packages.